The Cure
by Flame-Taw
Summary: Discontinued. Possibly up for a re-write.
1. Character Lists

** A/N: Okay, I know that the description on the page is kind of vauge, but you'll understand as you read. This is my first fanfic, so please read and review.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything that has to do with Maximum Ride, like Erasers, the labs, the whitecoats, etc. But I do own my own creations - Thrashers, Flame, Taw, Eric, Python, and Tally. Maybe more later. **

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**Name: Flame  
Age: 15  
Gender: Male  
Power(s): Makes fire  
Eyes: Green  
Hair: Black  
DNA: Bear  
Mutations: Two fangs. Can morph, like an Eraser, into a new form of Eraser called a Thrasher.  
Other: Is the leader. He doesn't think before he does anything. He can also get him and the others out of a good spot of trouble if need be. No one trusts him at first. His brother is an Eraser and his father a whitecoat. **

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**Name: Taw  
Age: 12  
Gender: Female  
Power(s): Can control electronics  
Eyes: Blue  
Hair: Brown w/ blond streaks  
DNA: Cat  
Mutations: Ears, whiskers, claws, tail, fur  
Other: Is great at climbing because of claws and Python's twin sister.**

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**Name: Python  
Age: 12  
Gender: Male  
Power(s): Makes things come to life and force fields  
Eyes: Yellow  
Hair: Brown w/ blond streaks  
DNA: Snake  
Mutations: Scales, forked tongue  
Other: Taw's twin brother and his tongue flicks a lot.**

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**Name: Tally  
Age: 9  
Gender: Female  
Power(s): Makes ice, bullet proof  
Eyes: Red  
Hair: Dark brown  
DNA: Armadillo  
Mutations: Hard armour all over her body. She can roll into a ball to protect herself if need be.  
Other: She is the one that heard about the cure and tells the others after they leave the lab.**


	2. Combat Training

**A/N: Okay, here's the first real chapter. Hope you like it. I don't mind flames, since they'll help me fix my story. Oh, and that pun was unintentional. (Points for you if you get it.) **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything that has to do with Maximum Ride, but I do my own group of experiments and the Thrashers.

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**Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. The clock above my head kept its rhythm slowly as the cat tail that served as a pendulum swung back and forth. I snapped my bedside light on, basking the room in a soft, golden glow. My bed looked like I had just finished a war with my blankets, which, for all I know, could be true. Comics, clothes, and toys were scattered on the floor and on my desk, dresser, and rolling chair. My computer screen was glowing, which was my kind-of night light. Groggily, I stood and got dressed, glancing at my cat clock in the process. 7:00 am. It was almost time for my training. 

After getting dressed, I left my room and went right into the living room. On the front of my bedroom door, which I closed behind me to hide the disaster zone, was my nickname: Flame. Beneath that, in parenthesis, was written Noah, my real name. The living room was large, and also kind of messy, but not as much so as my room. There were small things scattered here and there on the couch, coffee table, and chair. There was a stack of DVDs on top of the TV. Two more rooms led from this one - the kitchen and the bathroom. Both were shrouded in darkness and the doors were shut.

There was a knock on the door. I didn't bother to go and open it, since everyone that visited me invited themselves in anyway. Just as I suspected, my seventeen-year-old brother Eric entered. Eric was two years older than me and had a wild look in his eyes all the time. "'Morning, Noah. Ready for combat training?" Eric asked, leaning against the door frame.

"Yup. Completely ready," I said with what most people would call an evil smile, but what I thought of was a normal smile. I followed him out of the door, which we naturally closed behind us. I found myself in a brilliant white hallway. The rest of the lab was white - I thought they needed a painter to come in and color the place eventually. Oh, yeah, you probably have a few questions, right? Like, why is a fifteen-year-old living in his own home, which is in a lab? Let me explain.

See, for the first three years of my life, I lived like a normal little boy. I had a mother, a father, and my older brother Eric. When I was three I lost my mother, and when I was four my father suggested bringing Eric and me to work with him. He was a scientist in a lab in Wyoming, where we lived. When we got there, Eric and I both got shots for some reason. Dad explained what he had done it for right after. He had injected animal DNA into our systems.

Eric had gotten wolf DNA, and I had gotten bear. Both of us had kind of the same power with our DNA. Eric could turn into something like a werewolf, called an Eraser. Erasers were big, mean wolf guys that chased after escaped experiments, that the whitecoats, or scientists, created tons of each year. I could turn into a werebear, for lack of a better work. My group - there were more werebears than me - were called Thrashers, a new breed of Erasers. Both Eric and I had willingly started working for Dad, and we both pretty much had the same jobs. Patroling, searching for new experimental victims, and going after those that escape. The combat training I did every morning helped a bit.

The maze of hallways could get very confusing if you didn't know where to go. All were white and there were numerous twists and turns in it. "Have fun, bud," Eric said, leaving after about five minutes and going left down one hallway to start his patrol while I went right, the direction of the indoor arena. Most of the time it was too cold outdoors, since we were in the mountains, for us to do combat outside, so there was a built-in arena.

Halfway there, after Eric had left, I heard shouting up ahead and cursing. Turning yet another corner, I saw a girl a few years younger than myself struggling against two fully morphed Erasers. They looked kind of like walking dogs, but the girl looked pretty conspicuous, too. Her whole body was covered in fur, and she lacked human hair. She had cat ears protruding from the top of her head and a tail from her rear. She also had whiskers growing from her cheeks, and claws from her fingers and toes. They reminded me of the claws I sprouted when I turned Thrasher.

"Where's Python?!" she was shouting at a whitecoat, who didn't seem to hear her. She was struggling to break the hold of the Erasers and I smirked. She didn't stand a chance, and it was quite humorous to watch. "Where the hell is my brother? What did you do with him?"

"Take her back to her room," the whitecoat said like he didn't have a cat hybrid yelling at his face. The Erasers led her down the hall towards me. As she caught sight of me, she glared. She knew what I was - it was obvious. All other experiments here had escorts, like her, when they left their cages. I was wandering around freely...and the two fangs kind of gave it away, too. "Oh, good morning, Noah. Maybe you could try and get experiment 104231 to be quiet about her brother after your training?" the whitecoat asked, motioning towards where the girl had just been dragged away.

"Yessir. I'll get right on that after combat," I promised, giving a salute. I listened to the whitecoats - they were my bosses. Anyway, they wouldn't be too happy if I didn't listen, since I worked for them. But I didn't have any intention of disobeying - I liked my job.

Again, I made my way down the hall, still thinking about the cat girl. She was interesting - and if she was, what was her brother like? I know for a fact that boys are way more interesting that girls - which I why I normally ignore the female versions of Erasers, Thrashers, or just random experiments.

The hallway finally ended at another white door which I pushed open. On the other side was a very small room. Across the room was another door, and there was a viewing window to the left big enough for two people. There was a metal staircase to the left that led to a ledge above. There was a giant viewing window there, where whitecoats could see into the arena. On both floors there was countless electronic equipment designed for testing different things that I didn't know about. I didn't have to.

A man in his early fourties was standing in front of the small viewing window, scribbling some notes onto a clipboard. His hair had some grey strands to it and like every other whitecoat, he wore a long, uh, white coat. Hearing the door slam behind me, he turned and then smiled. "Noah, I was starting to think you weren't coming," he said.

"Sorry, Dad. Got held up in the hallway. Another experiment, number 104231, was causing a commotion. It was sorted out," I said simply, shrugging. Dad nodded and seemed to have brightened even more at the girl's serial number. "She was yelling something about her brother." Dad nodded again.

"Yes, I assume she would be," he said vaguely. "Now, are you ready to start? Your opponent has just been led in, I just have to do a few more things before you start. I'll tell you when." I nodded and went through the other door.

On the other side was a giant, round room. Built into the walls were small rooms, like little pens, where my opponents would be put before the fight started. They were normally left there to get frightened for a little while, and then would be sent out minutes later. After Dad had gotten some information from them, like serial number, powers, DNA, etc.

"Okay, Noah. Your first fight is against two experiments - number 104232 and 104472," Dad said over an intercom unit wired into the room. If I was the two unlucky experiments, I'd be frightened. "Get ready." I started my morph. Fur sprouted from my skin, more fangs filled my mouth and my original two grew longer. My fingernails grew out and to sharp points for claws. At the end, I looked like a demented bear, also walking on all fours. A cruddy side-effect. "GO!" Dad shouted. Two of the gates that led to the pens opened.

From one of them jumped a small eight-year-old girl who looked oddly determined, as if she was going to beat me up. She looked almost normal, except for a random feather in her hair and talons for feet. From the other pen came a twelve-year-old boy, the exact same age as the cat girl. I assumed that this was her brother. He looked as conspicuous as his sister. His body was covered in green scales, he lacked a nose - there were two nostrils on his face that were slits instead. His eyes were yellow with slits for pupils and he had a flicking tongue. He looked nervous, but also pretty determined.

The bird girl struck first, running right at me. I swatted her away but she just got right back up. I sighed and stood on my hind legs and roared like a bear. The snake boy looked like he was about to run into the pen, and would have if the gate hadn't closed back up after him. The girl looked unmoved. I lunged at her first. Grey wings sprouted from her back and she managed to launch into the air, so I turned to my other target. Snake boy looked terrified now that I was moving towards him.

Suddenly, his look turned smug, and I could tell something was up. I tried to stop, but before I could I ran into some invisible wall separating me from the boy. I growled. Time for extreme measures.

Normally, I didn't have to use fire against my opponents - especially not an eight-year-old or anyone younger than ten. I turned back into myself - I was still bigger and stronger than both of the kids at least. With a snap of my fingers, though, fire sprouted up from my palm out of no where. The girl paled. I drew my arm back like a pitcher and let it go. The girl was too slow and the fire hit her wing - she shouted out in pain, hitting the ground hard. I turned away from her - she wouldn't be going anywhere any time soon and I didn't want to knock her out yet. I turned back to snake boy.

The boy still looked confident in his force field - I guess he didn't expect it to melt like plastic when hit by fire. He went to a different tactic instead. Direct fighting. Before I knew exactly what was going on, he had launched at me with a eerie snake-like hiss, his momentum making me fall. He tried to bite me with his poisonous fangs, but I pushed him off of me before he could. In second I was werebear again.

Snake boy glared and went at me again, his fangs this time going into my leg. Stupid slow reflexes! I roared out in pain and swatted at him. If I wanted to, I could have knocked his head so that his neck broke instantly, but I liked to play with my food. I managed to leave four long scratch marks in his scales and give him an absolute concussion. Now back to the girl. I limped over to her, my back right leg dead already from the poison that was spreading slowly through me. Now to finish this, so that I didn't die from poisoning before I got the chance.

I limped up to the girl and hit her head hard enough for her to get knocked out. She also had a burnt wing, with half the feathers missing, a broken leg, and four scratches on the side of her face. "Now your turn," I said, my breath now coming in short pants as the edges of my vision started to blacken. The boy looked up at me worriedly and I knocked him out with one hit. Just as I did, the darkness took over my vision and I fell to the ground as well, turning back into myself at the same time. The last thing I remember was someone running in to take the knocked-out experiments back to their cages and then strong arms picking me up to bring me to a hospital room for a poison cure before I died.

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**A/N: Okay, please review. I would like to know what you think of this so far. You'll meet Tally and Taw (better) later, so just be patient. I'll update soon. I had to work on this chapter again - it had a lot of typos. Stupid things.**


	3. Another Boring Day: Or Is It?

**A/N: Okay, chapter two! Now, I want Flame to give the disclaimer for me. (I just want to be weird...And it also makes the disclaimer interesting. Maybe Python will do it next.)**

**Flame:** Do I gotta?  
**Me:** Yeah.  
**Flame:** -sigh- Fine. Flame-Taw does not own Max or the flock, or Erasers, or whitecoats. But he does own Eric, my dad, Tally, Taw, Python, all the Thrashers named in this chapter, and myself. (I really wish that weren't so.) Now can I go? I'm very busy and you're just being annoying.  
**Me:** -pouts- Sure, Flame, go ahead and be a jerk.

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"Noah?" The word echoed in my mind, as if it was an empty cave. It slowly became clearer as I came further into the conscious stage. "Noah." My name was now getting crystal clear and not sounding like it was being said through a tube of some sort. I opened my eyes and sat up. I was lying on a hard hospital bed, my leg with a bandage over it. Dad was standing next to the bed and Eric was lingering on the side lines. He looked relieved when I sat up. "Oh, good, you're okay." 

"Why do you say that?" I asked, glancing at a closed beaker of clear liquid on a metal table next to the bed. There was also a syringe next to it along with a ball of gauze and tape. I pulled my pant leg over the bandaged leg, looking at Dad curiously.

"Apparently 104232's poison is rapid-spreading. You were close to death and actually stopped breathing for a minute. We got the poison out in time. But Noah, your leg may be a little soar and tingly - don't do anything that would injure it further. So no more combat training or anything like that for at least a week," Dad advised. Eric nodded and Dad looked at him and then back at me. "Okay, boys, go do your patrols." I nodded and slid off the bed. My leg did feel like it had fallen asleep, and I had that pins and needles feeling in my leg.

"Who would have thought you would be close to being beat by a little snake twirp?" Eric teased once we left the room, obviously himself again and not worried about me anymore. I growled. "I mean, you could have been beat by that bird girl even." I smacked him upside the head. It was easy, since we were the same height.

"Yeah, who was it that got their butt kicked by _six _flying kids? Not to mention the other twenty Erasers that were with you," I pointed out smugly. Eric rolled his eyes and crossed his arms defiantly.

"That was different," he grumbled, and I dropped the subject. He obviously didn't like it being brought up. We walked silently for a few minutes before he spoke up again. "You gonna get your team together and patrol outside and we'll patrol inside?" he asked - we meaning him and his team of Erasers. I shrugged and nodded. "Alright, meet you later, little brother."

Again, we split up. This time, I was headed to where the other Thrashers took breaks or slept. They had their own wing in the lab, like the Erasers. I found half of my team - seven of 'em - in the kind of game room. It had a TV, a few couches, a pool table, foosball table, and also a few random board games and books and stuff for anyone else. All seven of them were staring at the TV, transfixed with the Science Channel. "Hey," I barked, and all of their heads snapped towards me before they all jumped up. Three of them were older than me - the only ones on the team that were older than me. Slasher (20), Neo (18), and Tyler (also 18). The others were all younger, the youngest going to age ten.

"Dr. Harkel said we need to do our outside patrol," I said, meaning my father. The ten-year-old grinned. She was new to the force, but I didn't pay her much attention. See what I said about females before, if you have forgotten already. "Go out and start your patrols," I ordered. Obediently, the my fellow werebears listened, trudging out. "Oh, Neo," I said, stopping her before she left. Like I said numerous times before, I normally didn't pay attention to girls, but she was uber smart. "Know where the others are?"

"Uh...Carter, Theo, Hannah, Ivy, and Rynold are in the cafeteria holding a food fight, and Olly and Kyla are in their rooms," she said and I nodded. She followed the others out of our break room, towards the outdoors. I made my way to Olly and Kyla's rooms first, since I didn't want to get muddled up in a food fight at the moment. Both of them had rooms next to each other, and I just rapped on their doors. They knew already what was needed - we used something similar to Morse code from time to time. Though sometimes people could get what I say mixed up with something else. I moved to the cafeteria next, dreading what I'd find.

The place was a warzone. Two tables were flipped on their sides to make forts for the two teams - girls vs. boys. Ivy and Hannah were behind the table closest to me, while Carter, Theo, and Rynold were behind the other. Each had a generous supply of food from the kitchen, and half of it was splattered all over the walls, floor, and ceiling. It actually made it look better. Just as the doors closed behind me, I got mashed potatoes in my face. The room went silent. I wiped the potatoes from my face, disgusted. I hated potatoes.

"Sorry, Flame," Rynold said sheepishly, standing up with the other boys following. The girls also stood, clasping their hands behind their backs and rocking back and forth on their heels. These two seemed to do everything together. "We'll clean this up," he offered.

"You'd better. But after your patrols. Move it," I said. Rynold led the line, his head hanging dejectedly. He was also ten. The girls didn't seem too bummed out and were actually skipping after the other three. I followed behind.

Patrol was always boring. All it was was wandering around either inside or outside the lab - right now it was the Thrasher's turn to patrol outside, as you well know. Nothing exciting went on, and everyone was relieved when their shift was over. But today was actually different.

After five minutes of going around the lab, looking for anything suspicious - I'd passed by the door twice now - there was a roar from the other side of the building.We had all been told to roar if we saw anything while in our Thrasher form, or just to yell out if we were completely human. While rushing towards the side of the building, I was turning into my werebear form.

The others had all reached there before I had, because I was the farthest. All were in their Thrasher forms and seemed to be surrounding something. Ivy and Olly moved out of my way so that I could see what everyone was looking at. It was more like they were guarding, actually. The girl who had been shouting was there, looking terrified. She also didn't look so hot - she had scratches and some of her fur was burnt in places. Snake boy was with her, glaring. His eyes fixed on me and he looked surprised that I wasn't sleeping with the fishes.

"I found them trying to run away, Flame. I don't know how they got out, but no one was following them for some reason. So much Eric," Neo said snidely. I smirked, turning into my human self. The snake boy grinned when he saw the bulge on my pant leg where my bandages were.

"Take them back to their cages," I barked out, making the younger two jump. "Watch out for 104232's force feild," I warned Carter and Rynold as they grabbed the snake boy by his arms and hauling him up, since he had been sitting on the ground. The cat girl suddenly recognized me and lunged. Kyla and Hannah grabbed her before she could reach me.

"Let go, you lapdogs! That stupid Thrasher hurt my brother!" she snarled. Man, she just didn't give up, did she? Suddenly, for reasons unknown, I had a pang of guilt in my chest, but I made it go away quickly. I didn't need that kind of emotion getting in way of my work.

"And he almost killed me in return, so we're even," I shot back, then looked at the two that held them. "On second thought, take these two to Dr. Harkel. He'll know what to do with these run-aways." Kyla, Hannah, Carter, and Rynold nodded, leading the two children away. The others were just standing there awkwardly. "Well, don't you all have a job to do? GO!" I shouted the last word and they hurried away. I glanced back at the lab were part of my team and the experiments had disappeared to. The guilt started rising again and I shoved it down. What the hell was going on? I'd never felt passionate before.

The rest of our patrol was slow and boring, and most of the time I was thinking of the cat girl whose brother I had almost killed. Was thinking about it, too. Who I had sneered at as she was led away down the hall, back to her God-forsaken cage. I didn't feel as sympathetic for her brother, since he tried to kill me, but she hadn't done anything. Yet. I figured it was only a matter of time - I wouldn't always have my team with me when I encountered that dangerous ball of fur.

"Noah," my dad said, hailing me in the hallway as I trudged in for dinner. I stopped in my tracks. "Good job catching 104231 and 104232. Could you do a couple things for me about them? Please first talk to your brother - supposedly, one of his team was near the room when the twins escaped. One of them might be trying to free the experiments, and we don't want that to happen. Next, I need you to move 104231, the girl, to another room. The empty one across the hall from your bedroom. If the Eraser didn't let them free, it was her."

"Alright," I said, trying not to sound too reluctant. Dad smiled and patted me on the back before moving back down the hall. "There goes my chance for food other than the potatoes," I muttered, moving towards the cafeteria. Not to eat, but to talk to my brother instead. He was with the other Eraser team leaders, at the far corner of the room. Surprisingly, it wasn't a disaster anymore - then again, I bet those that started the food fight left early to clean like they promised. Actually, that would be a first.

"Eric," I called so that he noticed me and I didn't just have to stand by the table for an hour to wait for him. He looked at me, exasperated. I didn't do anything to make him look like that. Except maybe call him names and stuff, but that wasn't anything special. "Could I talk to you?" I asked, then glanced at the other Erasers who were looking at me curiously and added, "Privately?"

"This had better be good," Eric grumbled, standing up and following me out of the cafeteria. "I can't believe I'm listening to my little brother." I glared. "Alright, alright. Whaddya need?"

"Dad wanted me to talk to you. About the almost-successful escape of 104231 and 104232," I said importantly. "He said he thinks one of your team has been letting experiments free, and wanted me to ask you about it." Eric snorted.

"Uh-huh. Riiiight. Well, sorry to disappoint you, Noah, but not one of them would do something like that. It's the girl. She's spooky and manages to get out often. This is the first time she's gotten outside with her brother, though," he said, sounding sincere. I sighed. "Sorry, bro. Can't help you any more," he said with a grin, going back into the cafeteria with his buddies. Which left me to move the girl. Another wave of guilt washed over me. Maybe I could do something else...something that would make her _not _want to kill me every time she saw me. That would mean being really sneaky, though, and a great actor. Though, being the smart kid I was, I already had a plan. Hopefully I didn't get caught putting it into action.

And this would be the last time I helped someone, especially a girl experiment.

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**A/N: Dun, dun, dun. Sorry to leave you hanging, but I wanted to leave it there and put his plan into action next chapter. Please review! Thanks for the one review from alamodie. Glad that someone spotted this. Anyway, next chapter will be up and about ASAP.**


	4. Plan Gone Wrong

**A/N: I'm on a roll. I can't believe I haven't gone brain-dead yet, since it happens often. Anyway, chapter three! Whoot! Oh, and here's Python with the disclaimer. (Also, Tally will be introduced in this chapter.)**

**Python: Flame-Taw doesn't own any Maximum Ride characters or ideas, only her own.  
Me: Short, sweet, and to the point. Moving on!**

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Like I should have been, I moved towards where the kids were being held. There was no one guarding, as I had thought, but what did tell me that it was there room was a sign on the door that said "Exp. 104230-104235". I looked through the small window. I saw the twins in their cages - there were two empty ones. Then there was another girl who didn't seem to be any different than me. She actually looked surprisingly similar. I ignored her, though - she wasn't who I was here to help. She was asleep anyway and probably wouldn't know the difference.

Slowly, so I didn't startle the two kids, I opened the door. Both of them looked up, looking at me venomously as I entered and closed the door behind me softly. "What do you want?" the girl hissed angrily.

"If you don't want out, I'll just leave," I said, turning to go, but her brother whisper-yelled, "Wait!" I turned back towards them. The girl - a sign on front of her cage said her name was Taw, beneath her serial number - glared at him. She obviously didn't want the help of a Thrasher. "Hey, it's true. I felt sorry for what I did to you guys - you ought to feel loved, since it's not often I bend down to acts of passion. I wanted to help you out, while everyone else is eating dinner." Taw looked at me suspiciously. "It's true," I argued, then to prove it, I opened up Taw's cage with one of my keys that I kept in my pocket, then unlocked her brother's. Luckily, the other experiment didn't waken - it would be hard to explain myself again.

"Why?" the boy - Python? - said curiously, crawling out, slowly followed by his sister. She still seemed not to trust me.

"Because," I said vaguely. "Get going, guys," I said before opening the door. And finding myself face-to-face with one of the other lead Erasers. "Oh, uh, hi, Harley," I said, trying to sound confident. He gave me the same suspicious look as Taw.

"What are you doing with these two, Noah?" he demanded. I glanced at them, hoping my expression said, "Play along."

"My father said to bring them in for testing. I hope you don't mind," I said, glancing at them again, this time sharply. Python flinched back. Man, he was good. "Tell Eric, just in case he asks," I added, moving around Harley, grabbing each of their forearms and steering them away. Taw gave him a worse glare than she gave me. Cool. When we were out of sight of him, I let go. "Now, I need you guys to get out of here. Trust me. I'll create a distraction so that you can get out safely." Python readily accepted, but Taw was more reluctant.

"Prove, any other way, that we can trust you," she snarled. I crossed my arms.

"Because I'm breaking every rule in the freaking book here, I am disobeying a whitecoat, not to mention my own dad, and I was supposed to separate you two forever to see how you escape. That enough?" I demanded. Taw seemed to reconsider, then reluctantly nodded.

"I guess," she muttered. "But wait. How will we know if you've started the distraction or not?" I gave my evil smile - Python shivered.

"Have you ever heard one of the alarms go off here?" I asked. She nodded. "Something along those lines."

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Fifteen minutes later, the twins were hidden in an empty hospital room, the halls were empty, other than me, and a plan was running through my head: 

1.) Set off alarm.  
2.) Mislead Thrashers and Erasers so that kids can escape.  
3.) Follow kids, because otherwise I'd be kicked out anyway or killed.  
4.) Hit myself repeatedly on the head for being soft and stupid.  
5.) Try to stay out of trouble for at least two days after escape.

And all of it was easier said than done.

Hopefully this would be the easiest of all of them, setting off the alarm. Either that, or this is where the trouble would start. Once I was sure that there was no one in the halls still, I went towards the control room. It was just a small room with monitors, that showed cameras in every other room and about every other hallway. Hopefully they didn't see me that one time. Before I was halfway there, though, the alarm started blaring and red lights flashed from the walls, actually coloring them. Nice touch.

All would have been fine if I didn't hear someone over the intercom say, "Two experiment escape. Aided by a Thrasher." Shit! And, there was kind of a no-brainer as to who that Thrasher was. See, there were about a hundred or more Erasers but only fifteen of us, so it's really easy to single us out. I growled to myself and turned on my heel before running like the hounds of hell were on my tail. Actually, in a sense they were, but I'll skip the lame dog jokes for now. Too busy running for my free life, which I'm pretty sure is over now. Darn. And all because of one teeny little act of compasion.

I made a beeline for the door, where I hoped the other two had gotten out of already. I didn't want to be caught, all for nothing, you know? I could hear Erasers behind me, down a few hallways, but gaining fast. "Shit," I swore under my breath, charging out of the door. The trees looked so far away, and the growling and snarling was getting closer and closer to me. The Erasers ran out of the lab when I was three-fourths of the way to the stupid trees. I gulped.

Running through the trees, I became a clutz and tripped over something - probably a freaking rock, knowing me, or even my own feet. Either way, the Erasers had almost closed the distance and I had just fallen flat on my face. Not a very heroic run-away attempt, now is it? Only seconds before they had caught up to me, as I was scrambling to my feet, back to them naturally to run, I heard a _thunk. _Then two more. "It's just ice, idiots! Break it!" I heard Eric yell. I chanced to turn around, expecting it to be a trick. I wouldn't be overly surprised if it was. What it really was did surprise me, though.

As Eric said, it was a wall of ice separating me from my persuers. But that was only half of it. Projecting this ice wall was a little girl, about eight or nine. She had, like, armadillo armour on her arms, hands, feet, and probably her back, too. Her eyes were a spooky red. Made me think of a rat. "Why are you standing there gawking? You're trying to get away, right? Go," she said as if I were the younger one instead of the other way around. I nodded and ran. I wasn't going to wait for her - my compassionate feelings were at an end from now on, hopefully.

I ran for a good fifteen, twenty minutes until there was a stitch in my side and my breath was coming in short gasps. I sat down, looking back at the lab longingly. Okay, I had deserved all that, sure, since I had broken the rules. But now I was starting to regret it. Starting to. See, my brother and father, the only family I had, lived there, and the only people I considered friends were there too. I've also never been on my own. Sure, I was fifteen, and yeah, I wasn't supposed to be scared, but I was. I didn't know where to go or anything - didn't have any money for food or drink, either. "This is a 10 on the stupidity scale," I muttered, sitting down and putting my head in my hands.

"What is?" I looked up sharply at the armadillo girl who had saved me. She was standing over me, looking curious. I realized that she didn't know who, or what, I was. She showed no fear or worry, and that was something new to me. Even my team and sometimes Eric and Dad were scared of me - it was weird, not being treated that way.

"Nothing," I muttered, looking down again with my arms cross on top of my knees. The girl sat down next to me.

"Who are you and why were you running from the Erasers and the bear things? My name's Tally." She said this all like I was a complete moron and I rolled my eyes. "Sorry, it just doesn't seem like you talk that much and stuff, and I remember some of the other experiments are actually kind of...dumb," she apologized.

"It's okay. I'm N - Flame." I changed to my nickname quickly - my real name would be easier for an Eraser to identify me with if I kept using it. "I, uh, ran away." It was kind of the truth - Tally nodded.

"I ran away too, but a year ago before those bear things really showed up. There was one when I ran away, and he was really mean," she said. Oddly enough, I started to feel better, just because she was scared of me. Or at least, the kid she remembers. Now I felt a small sense of normality. "I came back to help a couple of my friends run away, too. They're twins." My ears perked up. This kid new Taw and Python? Weird.

"Tally?" I heard an amazed voice and jumped up. I easily recognized the tone as Taw. She probably wasn't very happy with me still and I would rather not be around right now. Even though I had been planning to follow them, I hadn't been planning on being chased away and almost leading the Erasers to them. Next second, before I had chance to haul butt out of there, Taw and Python came out of the trees. Taw glared angrily at me. "What are _you _doing here?" she snarled. I shrugged.

"Running. Trying not to get caught by the Erasers and other Thrashers... Getting away since I'm an outlaw. You can say it any way you want," I answered. Tally also stood and looked up at me curiously. She also had a hint of suspicion in her red eyes.

"What are Thrashers, Flame?" she asked. I didn't want to answer, and she turned to the other two. "What are you talking about, Taw?" she asked. Taw kept glaring at me and Python kind of moved behind his sister for protection.

"Uh, Flame here is one of the Thrashers, or werebears. The leader of them actually. Remember that rude bear kid?" she said. I cleared my throat uncomfortably - Tally nodded enthusiastically. "That's him." Tally suddenly looked terrified. Now that was the appropriate emotion. If only she would keep it. She suddenly went curious again.

"So why were you running?" she asked me. "If you work for them, why were they chasing you?"

"Broke some big rules," I said vaguely, looking at the twins. "And why the hell are you so cranky at me? I managed to get you out of there, didn't I?" I demanded, then muttered under my breath, "But I'd rather take that all back." Python and Taw both had a similar glare now. Tally looked like she was balancing between amazement and anger.

"That's why we don't trust you still. Why don't you just leave us well alone?" Python demanded. He seemed to have gotten braver the last few seconds. I sighed and nodded.

"I guess that's fair enough," I said, bummed. They were probably the only way I could survive in the mountains. "If I'm going to be on my own, I might as well head back to the lab." What I was actually trying to do was give them a guilt trip. I would make sure they could never do the same for me. Tally grabbed my arm as I moved to walk back the way I'd come.

"Don't go, Flame," she said. "You can stay with us, because you're not mean anymore, it looks like. Please?" I gave myself a satisfied smirk, which Taw saw and she rolled her eyes. I nodded.

"Okay," I promised Tally. She grinned.

"Cool! Now we can be a group, and you could be the leader," she said. Wow, that was easy.

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**A/N: Okay, so all of you know, N - uh, Flame will be on the good side for a little while. (A little while being one or two chapters). Please review. Thanks for all the previous reviews, too, guys!**


	5. Life as a Normal Kid

**A/N: Sorry about Tally's personality changes - there's an explaination in this chappie. Hopefully it will clarifiy it a bit. Sorry to confused you with that. (And sorry for the disclaimer - Tally and Python both wanted to do it.)**

**Me:** I finally managed to update!  
**Python:** Max hit a road-block down at the author's note in the story.  
**Tally:** I don't see _how_. It's not that hard, right?  
**Me:** Wrong. Anyway, get on with your jobs.  
**Python:** Sorry.  
**Tally:** Yeah, sorry.  
**Me:** Just get on with it!  
**Python:** Max doesn't own anything from Maximum Ride. -snickers- Ha. That sounds funny.  
**Me:** -glares-  
**Tally:** But she does own me, Python, Eric, Flame, Taw, Flame and Eric's dad...Thrashers...and the other fourteen Thrashers in Flame's team...and the other Eraser mentioned...  
**Me and Python:** WE GET IT!  
**Tally:** Sorry.  
**Me:** Anyway, on with the story.

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**---------- Eric's POV -----------**

I sheepishly made my way towards Dad's office. He didn't know about everything, and I had to be the one to tell him. He thought it was one of the Thrashers in Noah's team, not actually Noah. And he'd kill me when he found out that him and the two experiments managed to escape. I looked behind me, actually wishing one of _my _team had had the spine to come with me. Of course, they didn't.

I knocked at Dad's office door. "Come in," he called. I opened the door and stepped inside, lingering by the door. Dad was looking towards the wall, his back to me, but when I closed the door he turned around. "Did you get them?" he demanded. I bit my lip. "Well?"

"Uh...no," I said. Dad looked ready to explode. "And I have some more, uh, bad news." Dad sat down behind his desk and laced his fingers, staring at me. "First off, you know that armadillo experiment who turned invisible and got free?" Dad nodded. "Well, we saw her."

"And yet you didn't manage to get her back?"

"No," I said, trying to save what little dignity I still had. "She created an ice wall before we could reach her. But guess who she was really trying to protect?"

"Who?" Dad asked, genuinely curious.

"Noah." Dad stood up angrily, suddenly red in the face.

"You're lying, Eric," he growled, glaring. I shook my head, actually timid. Let me tell you, it was rare for me to be timid over anything. "How do you know it was Noah?"

"He was the only Thrasher not in the cafeteria when the alarm was raised, and he was seen letting the two escape," I muttered. Dad finally cracked and threw something. I ducked and it hit the wall behind me.

"Bring him back, Eric," Dad roared. "Now!" I nodded and left before something else came close to beheading me. Oh, man. That idiot had gotten me and him into a whole lot of trouble.

**----------- Flame's POV ----------**

Tally already looked up to me. It was weird - I liked Taw and Python's reactions better. They were scared of me, hesitant, and also reluctant. I'd actually be happier if Tally acted the same way, but I'd have to put up with it. There was no where else I could go, no one else that I could stay with so that I could stay alive. Anyway, Tally seemed to have forgiven me, and she was really expecting me to lead the four of us.

"Hey, Flame? Where are we going?" she asked, swinging on my arm. I resisted the urge to knock her upside the head. My arm was not a jungle gym! "Do you know where we're going at all or are you just guessing?" We'd only been walking for about five minutes and already Tally was getting annoying. Taw and Python were trudging along behind us, trying to stay at least five feet away from me.

"Guessing," I said simply. "And it's been five minutes, you can't be complaining already." Python didn't seem to have heard me, or if he did he had just ignored me, since he started complaining.

"I'm hungry," he whined. I glanced back at saw him staring at me. He seemed to be resisting the urge to leave his sister's side. Taw rolled her eyes.

"I'm the only sane one around here," she muttered to herself. I'm assuming she meant that she was the only one that wasn't - or wasn't starting to - look up to me. From just a second ago, Python seemed to be taking Tally's side.

"Uh...okay. Tally, would you happen to know where any civilization is?" I asked, looking back at her hopefully. She looked thoughtful, still swinging my arm. I gritted my teeth to stop from doing something stupid. She suddenly let go and walked on her own. Can you say "mood swings"?

"There's a town about an hour ahead," she said matter-of-factly. I noticed that she wasn't grinning or giggly anymore. In an instant that all changed. She smiled again and grabbed my hand. I stared at her. Behind me, I heard Python laughing and Taw holding back a snort. "What?" Tally asked.

"What the heck is with your mood swings?" I asked, perplexed. It's not often that a nine-year-old girl will act younger than her age, and then older seconds later, then go back to the first. Aw, man, thinking that gave me a headache.

"Sorry," she apologized sheepishly. "It's this DNA. See, most of the time I act my age, but sometimes armadillo instincts kick in. They protect themselves, don't like help, you know? And they don't get excited easily - also, you know, they are loads better at going solo." **(A/N: I don't know if all of this is true, but you get the idea. At least it explains the mood swings, right?) **I nodded, though it didn't make that much sense to me. I just pretended it did.

Through the hour, Python seemed to be getting friendlier and was now kind of in the middle of listening to me and listening to his sister. Literally, actually, since he was walking between us. Taw kept grumbling about how I was brain-washing Tally and Python and how I'd move to her next. If I could have brain-washed her, I would have made it so that she would stop her annoying complaints. Now that I think about it, it is a really good idea, if I had that power. Unforunately I don't. Darn.

Like Tally said, an hour later we reached the outskirts of a town. "Flame...we can't go with you," she pointed out, motioning to their much-more-noticeable mutations. I sighed and nodded.

"Okay, then...I'll get some clothes for you guys to hide that stuff before we go to eat. I'd rather not have to carry a lot of food back, too," I said. Then a thought hit me. "What about money?" The kids all bit their lower lips. That was a bit of a drawback. You know, not much. Note the sarcasm. "Uh...if we don't have money, how are we going to get all this stuff." Tally and Taw traded confused looks, then looked back at me. Tally seemed to be thinking and Taw was subbornly silent. Python muttered something and I asked him to repeat it.

"We could...steal the money," he suggested, still quietly. I was shocked. It had never crossed my mind to _steal_. But then again, there was no other way. "Flame?" I sighed and rubbed my forehead. "Should we? It would be better than stealing food or clothes," he said innocently.

"Don't have any other choice. I guess. But I'm not happy about it."

"Finally, something we agree on," muttered Taw under her breath. I gave her a glare which she promptly returned. Not bothering to keep up this contest, I turned and walked off.

Now, I'm not going to say how (since it would suck if all of a sudden the number of theives increased from reading this) but I managed to aquire over three hundred dollars. It would be enough for now. With the money I bought all the kids better clothing - hoodies, gloves, baggier pants for Taw to hide her tail, and sunglasses to hide Tally's red eyes and Python's yellow. Hopefully that was all that I needed. I payed for it then went back to where the others were waiting.

Taw was up in a tree, her tail dangling from a branch and swinging back and forth. It reminded me of the clock back in my room at the lab. No, I have _got _to stop thinking of the lab, before I do something stupid like return. Man, would _that _be suicide! Tally was doodling in the dirt - she had drawn a few armadillos, some rolled up ones looked like rolley-pollies, and she was starting on a random drawing I couldn't make out yet. Python looked bored - he was sitting against a tree trunk, his tongue flicking occasionally. He was the first to notice me.

"Whatcha get?" he asked, opening his eyes and turning them to me. I tossed him a hoodie, pair of gloves, and one of the sunglasses, which he promptly pulled on. "Can we go eat now?" he asked once he looked semi-normal with his hood pulled up so that his face was in shadows.

"Hold on a second," I said, unwillingly chuckling. It couldn't do to think about the lab, or to grow attached to these guys. No. Both of those would lead to stupid moves on my part.

I gave the girls their clothes and when they had all gotten them on, they looked fairly normal. "Don't you have to hide your fangs? They stick out," Tally asked, pointing. I touched the tips, which were sticking out below my upper lip, and shrugged.

"Lots of kids have canines like this - it won't matter," I said confidentally. Taw snorted but, as usual, didn't comment. "Come on, sour-puss," I growled, turning back to the town. I got hit in the head with a small rock for my remark. I took a deep breath, really close to morphing then and there, no matter how close to people we were, and hurting Taw. I managed to control those feelings.

We stopped by McDonald's for lunch - we had half the menu each. People kept giving us funny glances and Python was complaining about how dark it was with his sunglasses, and how hot it was with his hood up and gloves on. Another customer, who had grown tired of the complaints, suggested him taking them off. He shut up after that.

I thought it odd that no one spared us a second glance - we still stood out a mile. First there was me, almost a normal fifteen-year-old to everyone's eyes until they saw the tips of my fangs, or until I talked. Then the twins. I thought most people would know there was something up since their faces were shrouded in darkness and they wore gloves, and one wore sunglasses everywhere. Then the nine-year-old, who also wore gloves and a hood, though you could see her face and sunglasses. Man, people like us wouldn't be able to blend anywhere. I just thought it weird others didn't think so.

Python and Tally managed to convince me to waste some of our money on a motel room, as well, since we were here. I got the cheapest room that would hold all of us, to make them happy. They _were_ happy, and even Taw seemed pleased that I had given in and that we didn't have to sleep on the hard ground.

That night, all of us were lying down somewhere in the room. Python was on the couch, the girls had taken the beds, and I was sleeping on a mound of comfitors on the floor. I looked at each of the kids, sleeping. Taw had the remote by her hand, since she had fallen asleep channel surfing. Even though I tried not to, I couldn't help but feel like I belonged here, and that I actually had a real home now. I know that sounds cheesy, but oh well.

* * *

**A/N: Whoot! I finally managed to get past said roadblock mentioned by Python. And remind me to _never_ have more than one character do the disclaimer at a time. Alright, I'll update ASAP, as well as Premontions.**


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